The launch of the new BSPP website offers a new opportunity to revive the blog. I’ll be submitting regular articles that explore plant diseases around the world and discuss some of their wider implications. I also hope to highlight new developments, particularly in agriculture, comment on news items that catch my eye (or ear) and try to put plant diseases and plant health in a wider social and environmental context.
This is all a mite ambitious and I’ll welcome comments on what you think. Part of the thinking behind my aims comes from the mixed feelings I have about modern trends in plant disease research. partly because molecular biology and the astounding techniques for detecting pathogens and host responses baffle me. My main concern is knowing what happens to knowledge accumulated at the nanoscopic level. It’s a difficult question to ask – neatly avoided at a recent BSPP conference – but one we should remember.
